BHOPAL: Kuno National Park (KNP) in Madhya Pradesh’s Sheopur district, which became the first home to African cheetahs in India under the ambitious Project Cheetah on September 17, 2022, has lost both its Namibian ‘Rockstars’ in less than three years.
Namibian male coalition Elton aka Gaurav and Freddie aka Shaurya, who were nicknamed the ‘Rockstars’ due to being named after iconic singers, Elton John and Freddie Mercury, have died at the Kuno National Park within 32 months.
While Shaurya aged around seven years, died on January 16, 2024, under treatment after incoordination and a staggering gait at the KNP, the surviving male brother more than ten-years-old Gaurav died under treatment 32 months later at the same national park on Monday.
Following this, the first African male coalition to make KNP their home on PM Narendra Modi’s 72nd birthday on September 17, 2022 is no more.
According to the official statement from the Field Director-Cheetah Project, “Aged more than ten years, the Namibian male Gaurav aka Elton died while under treatment at the KNP at 4 pm on Monday.”
The Namibian male was rescued from the wild at KNP on September 12, 2026, after the tracking team observed it to be weak and dull. On being examined, Gaurav was found to be markedly weak, with visible muscle wasting and severe dehydration. Immediate systemic and supportive treatment was provided, following which Gaurav was shifted to Palpur and kept in a Quarantine Boma (QB) for close observation and further management.
Based on the preliminary clinical examination, an underlying chronic condition was suspected. Despite continued treatment and supportive care, Gaurav’s condition deteriorated and he died on Monday at around 4 PM.
“The exact cause of death will be ascertained after post-mortem examination and analysis of the samples collected, and further details will be available once the reports are received,” the statement added.
As per information available online, an African cheetah’s average lifespan is 8-12 years in the wild and up to 15 to 20 years in captivity and human care. While Shaurya, died when aged 7-plus years in January 2024, his male sibling Gaurav died 32 months later on Monday at the age of more than 10 years.
Importantly, Bhopal-based wildlife activist Ajay Dubey had posted on the X on September 19 (Saturday), about Elton’s critical state, a day before CM Dr Mohan Yadav had released Botswanan female cheetah Radha aka CCB-2 at western MP’s Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary (GSWS) and two days after India’s Project Cheetah had completed its four years.
“The Kuno National Park management must immediately clarify the health status of cheetah Elton. He was in extremely critical condition a few days ago, yet authorities remain silent. Kuno's lack of transparency raises serious questions—what is being hidden?” Dubey had posted on X on Saturday.
Dubey again took the social media on Monday, while sharing the official statement of Elton aka Gaurav’s death, he posted “Kuno National Park has admitted cheetah Elton’s death.”
Following Gaurav’s death on Monday, the KNP now has 51 cheetahs, including 36-Indian born cheetahs, out of which 16 are currently ranging freely in Kuno’s wild. Four cheetahs – all adults, meanwhile, are currently housed in the second habitat of African cheetahs, Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary (GSWS) in western MP.
With Gaurav’s death, all three Namibian male cheetahs, including Oban aka Pawan, Shaurya are now dead. The male trio were part of the first batch of eight African cheetahs (all Namibians), including three males and five females which were released into the KNP by PM Narendra Modi on his 72nd birthday to mark the start of the ambitious Cheetah Re-introduction Project in the country, where the fastest-moving land animal on earth had become extinct in 1952 due to rampant hunting.
Further, only two Namibian females, Asha and Jwala, out of the five females which formed the founder population of eight Namibian cheetahs under the Project Cheetah in September 2022, are alive at the KNP.
